Emperor Qi He did not expect Wei Yun to speak so directly, and his expression softened a bit.
“Where do you base such a statement?”
He sighed, “I urgently summoned you tonight to entrust this matter to your investigation. What do you think?”
Wei Yun, with his eyes still lowered and his expression unclear, nodded,
“I shall obey.”
“Since you have accepted, I will have the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple assist you,” Emperor Qi He, looking exhausted, rubbed his temples, his speech becoming slower.
When Wei Yun left the Qianlong Hall, it had already started to snow outside.
A eunuch beside him held a palace lantern, leading the way for him.
Throughout the carriage ride, Wei Yun was still pondering who exactly was responsible for Wu Fuqing’s death.
It was probably no secret among the court that this Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites was highly favored and heavily relied upon by Emperor Qi He, being one of the close officials the Emperor particularly valued.
Otherwise, Emperor Qi He would not have entrusted Wu Fuqing with the management of the alchemy chamber in the Astrology Pavilion.
Yet, such a close official to the Emperor mysteriously died in broad daylight on the streets.
Who could have done it?
Was it Prince Xin?
Or the Crown Prince?
Or someone else?
The next morning, during the early court session, Emperor Qi He brought up this matter, ordering Wei Yun to thoroughly investigate Wu Fuqing’s death, with the assistance of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, He Mingrui.
This incident stirred quite a commotion among the court.
Speculations and discussions were rampant.
Due to his involvement in this matter, Wei Yun found little time to spend at home, and often stayed within the forbidden palace.
Thus, the matter regarding Xie Tao was also put aside.
All the Taoist alchemists in the Astrology Pavilion were closely questioned by Wei Jing, but no significant discoveries were made.
Wu Fuqing’s family and subordinates were almost entirely wiped out that night.
Not a single person from the Wu household was left alive.
Everyone in the Wu household died by the sword, yet Wu Fuqing bled to death from all orifices after leaving his residence, adding another layer of mystery to the case.
It was not until Wei Jing found some land deeds, silver notes, and a booklet detailing all the tasks Wu Fuqing had assigned, in the house of one of Wu Fuqing’s now-deceased confidants, that a clue emerged.
Perhaps fearing that Wu Fuqing would kill him for knowing too much, he had left these records and some items behind.
“Wu Fuqing had dealings with both the Crown Prince and Prince Xin,” Wei Jing reported truthfully to Wei Yun in the study of the Imperial Advisor’s mansion.
Wei Yun pondered for a moment, tapping his fingers on the desk, before scoffing coldly, “It seems that Minister Wu was particularly adept at playing both sides.”
He had hoped to please both parties but ended up causing his own demise.
However, it was unclear whether the Crown Prince or Prince Xin was responsible for his death.
The situation seemed straightforward, but Wei Yun still felt something was amiss.
Neither the Crown Prince nor Prince Xin would likely take Wu Fuqing’s life so easily, given that Wu Fuqing was highly regarded by Emperor Qi He.
To kill a close official under Emperor Qi He’s watch would be an incredibly foolish act.
Even if the Crown Prince was impulsive and prone to anger, his tutor, Xu Dian, would surely not allow him to make such a blunder.
Not to mention Prince Xin.
Prince Xin was indeed smarter than the Crown Prince, aware of Emperor Qi He’s partiality towards the Crown Prince. A misstep in the capital could give Emperor Qi He an excuse to send him back to his remote fiefdom.
But if neither of them was responsible for Wu Fuqing’s death, then who was?
After a moment of contemplation with closed eyes, Wei Yun suddenly had a suspicion.
He abruptly opened his eyes and looked at Wei Jing, “Go, search the Wu residence again thoroughly.”
Wei Jing promptly responded, “Yes.”
After Wei Jing left, Wei Yun sat in front of the desk, supporting himself with one hand on it and rubbing his brow.
The busyness of the past few days had left him feeling quite exhausted.
Outside the window, the dawn light broke through, piercing the layers of darkness, and the sky gradually brightened.
Another night had passed.
Wei Yun glanced out of the window lattices to find that a light rain had started to fall.
Today, there was no need to attend court, nor did he have to enter the palace temporarily.
Holding the copper pendant in his hand, Wei Yun’s gaze softened momentarily when he lowered his eyes, his typically indifferent pupils gaining a few strands of warmth.
By then, the candle beside the desk had burnt out, its light extinguished, leaving only a trail of thin smoke that dissipated without a trace.
He took out a brocade bag stored in a box.
The gold powder inside was no longer as full as it once was, having been used up significantly.
He poured some into the incense burner and lit it with a fire starter.
As the dense fog began to rise, the sleeping girl’s outline became clearer, and her quilt was on the verge of sliding off.
Wei Yun immediately supported her waist, lifted her up, and wrapped her tightly in the quilt.
His actions were always careful and delicate.
Carrying her into the inner room and placing her on the soft couch, he sat on a stool beside the couch and tucked in the quilt corners for her.
Just quietly gazing at her sleeping face like this momentarily eased all the tension he had been feeling these days.
Her breathing was shallow, and occasionally, her lips would part unconsciously.
Wei Yun watched her for a while, his brows relaxing. He suddenly reached out, gently caressing her cheek.
But he forgot how cold his fingers were at the moment.
It was almost at the instant of touching Xie Tao’s cheek through her skin’s temperature that he realized how cold his fingers were.
And the moment he withdrew his hand, he saw the girl’s eyelids twitch and she yawned sleepily before opening her eyes.
Perhaps because of the yawn, her eyes were a bit moist, making them look misty.
“Wei Yun?” Upon seeing him, Xie Tao seemed a bit slow to react.
She rubbed her eyes, then recognizing the familiar surroundings, she understood her situation.
It had been several days since she last came over, because he had been busy, so their conversations had been scarce. Seeing him now, she threw herself into his arms.
“I’ve missed you…” Smelling the cool fragrance on him, she hugged his waist tightly and rubbed her cheek against his clothes.
Her voice unconsciously softened even more.
Wei Yun stiffened his back but did not push her away. Instead, he wrapped the quilt around her and whispered a warning, “Don’t catch a cold.”
“Don’t light incense next time I’m asleep; it’s such a waste to sleep through the time!”
She mumbled into his chest, “I want to be awake for every minute I’m here…”
The gold powder was running low.
This meant that her chances to see him genuinely, even to touch him, were becoming increasingly scarce.
Thus, Xie Tao cherished every moment she had here all the more.
Upon hearing her words, Wei Yun fell silent for a moment before reaching out to gently stroke her hair, whispering, “I’ll remember that.”
Such a gentle compromise.
Perhaps in this world, no one else could make Wei Yun yield like this.
And when Xie Tao heard his voice and looked up at him, she noticed the faint blue shadows under his eyes.
“Have you not been resting well again?”
Xie Tao quickly withdrew from his embrace, then flipped open her own quilt, looking at him and saying, “Come and sleep for a bit!”
“…No need,” Wei Yun’s eyelashes trembled.
But in the next second, he was pulled by the wrist by Xie Tao. Before he could react or guard against it, he was pulled forcefully onto the soft couch, landing on top of her.
Their bodies were close, separated only by a layer of quilt.
Wei Yun tried to turn over to leave but was held back by Xie Tao grabbing his wrist.
She even pushed a soft pillow under his neck and moved closer, still holding onto his wrist with one hand and covering half of her quilt over him with the other.
“Xie Tao,”
Wei Yun turned his head to say something, but his nose lightly brushed against her soft lips, heating his ears and causing him to forget much of what he wanted to say in an instant.
Xie Tao hadn’t noticed anything at first, but when he truly lay beside her, and their eyes met, she felt a sudden surge of shyness.
She buried half of her face in the quilt in an instant.
Both of them lay straight on the narrow couch, silent for a moment.
Outside the window, the continuous patter of rain sounded like the lightest and clearest melody, falling everywhere, making distinct sounds.
Yet it was inexplicably melodious.
She kept holding onto Wei Yun’s wrist, as if afraid he would get up and leave, even as sleepiness overtook her again, she still didn’t let go of his wrist.
She had said that she didn’t want to miss a moment while here.
But now, she unconsciously fell into a deep sleep.
Wei Yun was indeed tired, but he had no inclination to sleep.
Because she was sleeping beside him.
Wei Yun tried several times to gently pull away from her grip, but afraid of disturbing her sleep, he would only tentatively pull away, seeing her subconsciously grip his wrist tighter, he could only stop.
Gradually, he began to focus his gaze on her peacefully sleeping face.
There was no candlelight in the room, the rainy sky outside was gloomy, and the light that seeped in was dim.
Her small frame, curled up in the quilt, was like a small animal.
Perhaps because half of her face was buried in the quilt, obstructing her breathing, her cheeks were a bit red, and her breathing in sleep was a bit rapid, as if entangled in a nightmare.
Wei Yun reached out, tucking the quilt under her chin.
In that instant, he saw her in her sleep stretch her brows and eyes, and so he also secretly lifted the corners of his mouth.
Perhaps because she was asleep, he, lying beside her, also gradually relaxed.
The sound of rain and her faint breathing were in his ears.
Only with her by his side did he feel, for a moment, that living could also be an easy thing.
At such a tranquil moment, he unknowingly closed his eyes as well, vaguely on the verge of falling into a deep sleep.
By then, the charcoal fire in the inner chamber had burnt out and extinguished.
The warm ambiance was replaced by damp cold.
Xie Tao, caught in her dreams, curled up unconsciously moving towards the heat source beside her.
When Wei Yun was tightly embraced by Xie Tao in that instant, all drowsiness vanished in a flash. He suddenly opened his eyes and looked down to see the girl already resting against his chest.
Between them, there was no longer any distance.
Thus, a cold, pale face instantly blushed with a light, thin red.
Seeming somewhat at a loss.
It was after some time that he finally sighed softly.
Perhaps it was a momentary covetousness that troubled his heart,
Eventually, his chin rested on top of her head as he slowly closed his eyes.
The rain was kept outside, under the eaves beyond the window lattice, its pitter-patter sound making the room even more quietly serene.
The incense burner in the outer room was still releasing strands of smoke.
In the dim light and shadow, through the slightly swaying tassel curtains,
The two on the soft couch embraced each other in sleep, breathing lightly.
